Searching for life: new telescopes may soon reveal existence of ETs

By Dick Pelletier

      

    With today's technologies advancing exponentially, many alive today might one day witness history's most amazing event ever – proof that intelligent ETs share our universe.

    Scientists estimate there are 100 million Earthlike planets in our galaxy alone and with more than 100 billion other galaxies in the cosmos, as well as other universes and dimensions, if such things exist; overwhelming odds suggest we are not alone.

    With powerful new telescopes in the sky and more on the drawing board, positive futurists believe we will soon unlock many of the secrets our Universe holds, and within one-to-three decades, we could find indisputable evidence that other intelligent lifeforms reside in our galaxy.

    Today's pride of the sky, the 21-year-old Hubble Space Telescope, has led to many breakthrough discoveries, but the Kepler Space Telescope, launched in 2009, has already spotted nearly 1,300 alien planet candidates, including many that orbit in a habitable, or 'goldilocks' zone – the just-right distance from their star that allows liquid water to exist.

    NASA planet specialist, Bill Borucki believes “It's just a matter of time before we find an Earth twin or two out there.”

    The anxiously-awaited James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) with a proposed 2018 launch date, which for the most part has escaped recent Congress budget cuts, represent humanity's next major attempt to explore deep space. This tennis court-sized monster will reside in an orbit 1 million miles above Earth, and can observe the first galaxies formed after the Big Bang.

    JWST could resolve conflicts like the one recently created by astronomers who found evidence that the Universe is 150 billion years old, not 12.5 billion years as traditionally thought.

    Next in line, the gigantic Advanced Technology Large-Aperture Space Telescope, with a hoped-for launch date between 2025 and 2035, will orbit the sun and observe distant planets providing dazzling views of surface features, cloud cover, atmosphere; maybe even city lights.

    Experts predict that should any of these scopes discover a planet with high probabilities of harboring intelligent life, scientists would utilize our latest state-of-the-art quantum computing and artificial intelligence systems to create simulations of what the inhabitants of this planet might look like today, and postulate the outcome to expect should we make contact.

    How might the world react to this news? Optimistic thinkers may envision these beings as capable and willing to help us improve ourselves. They could have cures for diseases, space ships that travel faster-than-light speeds, and a superior knowledge of quantum-physics laws.

    However, some could fear that our newfound neighbors would be too dangerous. Astronomer Stephen Hawking warns that superior aliens may want to conquer us and colonize our planet.

    But future 2020s and 2030s humans, possessing enhanced brains with improved reasoning abilities may not share these concerns. An advanced Earth society with powerful intelligence technologies at their disposal might recognize that sharing between two civilizations, regardless of how different they may appear to each other, will reap huge benefits for both worlds.

    Will the future unfold in this positive manner? Historians remind us that it's only been 100 years since the Wright Brothers developed airplanes, and we've already landed men on the moon, established worldwide communications with our Internet and cell phones, made plans to build Mars and Moon colonies, and could soon discover ETs. Welcome to The Federation.

    This article appeared in various print publications and on-line blogs. Comments always welcome.